Information System Project Management Lecture three Chapter one By Richard Ssembatya MSc. Cs, BSc CS, CCNA, IT Essentials, ICDL Institute of Computer Science MUST Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Project management A project must have a sponsor and a customer, and there is always uncertainty whether it is going to succeed or fail. To ascertain whether an undertaking constitute a project, you look for at least more than two of the following Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Project management If the activity involve more than two people If the activity involve substantial risk If in the even to failure, there is significant impact If it requires coordination of two or more departments If activity will involve outside partner Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Project management If the activity will involve new technology If undertaking will be completed within a specified period Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Project Constraints Projects are faced with three constraints Time – Duration Cost – Budget Quality – scope and specification Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Categories of Projects There are four categories of projects Construction Projects These are usually implemented on the site some times far from the contractors’ office. These involve large capital investments, and require intensive management of progress, finance and quality Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Categories of Projects Manufacturing Projects Aim to produce a single or small batch of product. E.g. a piece of equipment which are purposely built. Usually production is carried out at contractors site so as to provide on spot management and supervision of the work. Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Categories of Projects Management projects These are common in most organizations e.g. design/installation of a new computer system, relocation from one office to another e.t.c Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Categories of Projects Research Projects These usually aim to extend on then current knowledge. The project manager must be good at managing the following People Budget Process Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Phases of Project Management Project management consists of four phases There are several questions to ask at each of the stages to measure project success. If the answer is yes then you can know that the project is under control and is succeeding. If there some questions with no, then you know the project has a problem and there is need for corrective action. Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Understanding the project Do I understand the project justification? Do I understand the background of the project? Do I understand who the players are and the roles they will take? Do I understand the clients priorities? The main concern is people and people have different interests Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Define the Project Have I defined the project deliverable? – (tangible output of each undertaking) Have I established the scope for the system and the project? Have I determined how the deliverables will be reviewed and approve? Have defined the structure and organization of the clients team? Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Deliverables These are the tangible outcome of the undertaking – project. It is important to agree the deliverable with the client. Spend time defining and documenting them and then obtain approval from the client. Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Defining Deliverables Develop the list of deliverables with the client Review each deliverable with the client Eliminate any ambiguity and confusion Get the client sign off on the deliverables Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Examples of deliverable Planning stage Project plan Quality plan Work plan Budget Design stage Data model Process model Data dictionary Defining the scope Scope is important because it impacts on the project budget and time plan Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Scope System Scope Overall system Project Scope Part of the overall system Agree with the client the input and outputs. The whole project will be derailed if the scope is not clearly defined, agreed and documented. Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Managing Scope Changes Make the client aware and agree that a change in the scope has an impact on cost and schedule Client must agree and approve or refuse and reject the change. Work out estimates to establish effects of change on cost and time schedule. Document change in a change request form. Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

The change request Form It includes the following Project name and date: ------------------------- Change requested by: -------------------------- Description of change: -------------------------- Justification of change: ------------------------- Impact of the project: --------------------------- Impact on the schedule: ----------------------- Impact on the cost: ------------------------------ Resolution on date when it is requested: -- Date of approval or rejection: ----------------- Signature: ------------------------------------------ Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Planning the Project Have I defined the risks and developed plans to mitigate them? Have I documented the project assumptions and constraints? Have defined the structure in the organization of the project? Have I developed a quality plan? Have I developed a list of detailed project activities? Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Planning the Project Have defined the dependencies between activities? Have I built the project estimates of the required work? Have assigned resources and labeled them? Have I computed the schedule Have I developed the project budget? Have I developed an overall project plan? Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Running the Project Am I building an effective team? Do I know where I stand against the project schedule and budget? Am I managing the risks? Am I solving schedule problems? Am I managing request for scope changes? Am I managing quality? Are my subcontractors delivering on their commitments? Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Running the Project Do I understand the expectation of the client and can I meet them? Am I conducting regular team meetings and are they effective? Do I record project status and outstanding issues regularly? Am I taking time to reflect privately on progress? Do I and my team celebrate our successes? Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Problems with Project Goals The project sponsor or client has an inadequate idea of what the project is about at the start. There may be a failure of communication between the client and the project manager. The may be due to a lack of technical knowledge on the part of the client or an overuse of jargon by the project manager. Specifications may be subject to constant change. This may be due to problems with individual clients, decision making processes at the client end, or environmental changes. For example the government may change the basic "rules of the game" before the completion of the project. Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Problems with Project Goals The project goals may be unrealistic and unachievable, and it may be that this is only realised once the project is under way. The client may become carried away with the idea of the project and may be unable to see clearly what can be achieved. Projects may be highly complex and may have a number of objectives that actually contradict each other. Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Way Forward (a) There are perhaps two stages which can help in ensuring that goals are properly defined and achievable: Ensuring that the client specification is clear and understandable. To do this you must first of all establish the objectives of the project. It would help to ask the following questions: What is it that the organisation is setting out to achieve or is being asked to achieve? Will the suggested project fulfil these objectives? Have all the alternatives been considered and is the chosen option the best one available? Have the full effects of the project, both inside and outside the organisation, been considered? Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya

Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya Way Forward (b) Preparation of a Project overviews (Project brief). The brief should take the objectives set out in the previous exercise and translate them into targets and goals. Any key constraints should also be identified and stated at this stage. This brief should be agreed by the sponsor/client and communicated to the project manager. Any ambiguities or queries should be sorted out as soon as possible. Lecture Notes - Richard Ssembatya